Giuseppecuervo1821
Limited Practicality
Chevrolet’s arch-rival, Ford, was keenly aware of the importance of Chevrolet’s new Corvette. Henry Ford II lured former GM executive Lewis Crusoe to help develop the new car for Ford. Crusoe was joined by several others including Ford chief designer, Frank Hershey.
Franklin Quick "Frank" Hershey (1907–1997) was an American automobile designer and student of General Motors Vice President of Design Harley Earl. Hershey is known for his 1932 Peerless V-16 prototype, 1949 Cadillac tailfins, and the 1955 Ford Thunderbird. Hershey was born in Michigan, and raised in Beverly Hills and La Puente, California. He attended Occidental College where he majored in forestry. Hershey served in the Navy during World War II.
In 1952, Frank Hershey was hired to head the Ford Division studios. After several years with Packard, he went to Ford where he designed the 1953-1957 full sized Fords. According to an interview given by Hershey to James W. Howell in 1995, George Walker had been hired as the public face of Ford design. Hershey designed the landmark Ford Thunderbird, and admitted so in a 1954 interview, which created friction between Walker and Hershey.
Hershey began working on a two-passenger open vehicle with a Ford Interceptor V8 engine, based on the upcoming Ford overhead-valve V8 engine, slated for introduction in the 1954 models. Hershey based his two-seater on one of his favorite English sports cars, the Jaguar XK120. The car would have the same wheelbase, interior seating position, steering wheel angle, and pedal angles.
On 18 May, 1953, Crusoe was shown a painted clay model that closely resembled the final car after comparing it favorably with the current European trends. Henry Ford II approved the final design concept and Crusoe gave the go-ahead for production in September.
Even as the 1957 Ford Thunderbird went on sale, its future was in doubt. Frank Hershey assigned Rhys Miller and Bill Boyer to prepare facelifts for 1956 and 1957, but its long-term prospects were murkier. If the Thunderbird was indeed a promotion, as Tom Case said, there was little reason to continue it once its tooling costs were paid off.
Lewis Crusoe understood that the main impediment to Thunderbird sales, aside from price, was the car’s limited practicality. With no rear seat and almost no trunk space, it was for customers who could afford two or more cars. In the fall of 1954, he asked Boyer and crew to explore the possibility of a stretched, four-seater Thunderbird, known internally as project 195H (the H standing for the number 8, meaning the 1958 model year).
If Frank Hershey was truly the father of the Thunderbird, he was not well rewarded for his efforts. In May 1955, George Walker became vice president of Ford Styling, the first time the Ford Motor Company had such a position. Hershey had never cared for Walker’s team and being passed over in favor of Walker was a bitter pill to swallow. Shortly after Walker’s ascendancy, Hershey was gone; Dick Samsen says that McNamara fired him, but Hershey later claimed that he resigned to avoid being fired by Walker. Hershey went on to work at Kaiser Aluminum.
Shortly before Walker’s promotion, Ford established a separate Thunderbird design studio. Headed by Bill Boyer, the Thunderbird studio had its own stylists and body engineers, allowing it a surprising degree of independence from the rest of the Styling department. The studio’s first challenge was to turn the 195H four-seater concept into a production car.
Limited Practicality
Chevrolet’s arch-rival, Ford, was keenly aware of the importance of Chevrolet’s new Corvette. Henry Ford II lured former GM executive Lewis Crusoe to help develop the new car for Ford. Crusoe was joined by several others including Ford chief designer, Frank Hershey.
Franklin Quick "Frank" Hershey (1907–1997) was an American automobile designer and student of General Motors Vice President of Design Harley Earl. Hershey is known for his 1932 Peerless V-16 prototype, 1949 Cadillac tailfins, and the 1955 Ford Thunderbird. Hershey was born in Michigan, and raised in Beverly Hills and La Puente, California. He attended Occidental College where he majored in forestry. Hershey served in the Navy during World War II.
In 1952, Frank Hershey was hired to head the Ford Division studios. After several years with Packard, he went to Ford where he designed the 1953-1957 full sized Fords. According to an interview given by Hershey to James W. Howell in 1995, George Walker had been hired as the public face of Ford design. Hershey designed the landmark Ford Thunderbird, and admitted so in a 1954 interview, which created friction between Walker and Hershey.
Hershey began working on a two-passenger open vehicle with a Ford Interceptor V8 engine, based on the upcoming Ford overhead-valve V8 engine, slated for introduction in the 1954 models. Hershey based his two-seater on one of his favorite English sports cars, the Jaguar XK120. The car would have the same wheelbase, interior seating position, steering wheel angle, and pedal angles.
On 18 May, 1953, Crusoe was shown a painted clay model that closely resembled the final car after comparing it favorably with the current European trends. Henry Ford II approved the final design concept and Crusoe gave the go-ahead for production in September.
Even as the 1957 Ford Thunderbird went on sale, its future was in doubt. Frank Hershey assigned Rhys Miller and Bill Boyer to prepare facelifts for 1956 and 1957, but its long-term prospects were murkier. If the Thunderbird was indeed a promotion, as Tom Case said, there was little reason to continue it once its tooling costs were paid off.
Lewis Crusoe understood that the main impediment to Thunderbird sales, aside from price, was the car’s limited practicality. With no rear seat and almost no trunk space, it was for customers who could afford two or more cars. In the fall of 1954, he asked Boyer and crew to explore the possibility of a stretched, four-seater Thunderbird, known internally as project 195H (the H standing for the number 8, meaning the 1958 model year).
If Frank Hershey was truly the father of the Thunderbird, he was not well rewarded for his efforts. In May 1955, George Walker became vice president of Ford Styling, the first time the Ford Motor Company had such a position. Hershey had never cared for Walker’s team and being passed over in favor of Walker was a bitter pill to swallow. Shortly after Walker’s ascendancy, Hershey was gone; Dick Samsen says that McNamara fired him, but Hershey later claimed that he resigned to avoid being fired by Walker. Hershey went on to work at Kaiser Aluminum.
Shortly before Walker’s promotion, Ford established a separate Thunderbird design studio. Headed by Bill Boyer, the Thunderbird studio had its own stylists and body engineers, allowing it a surprising degree of independence from the rest of the Styling department. The studio’s first challenge was to turn the 195H four-seater concept into a production car.